A Shot in the Dark
by PhantomSilverCrystal
Summary: [SPD] "Her anger boiled beneath her skin, but he only stared back at her, completely unfazed. It wasn't enough. She wanted him to scream at her so she could scream back. She wanted him to break the way she was broken." She didn't go looking for a fight, but if one came looking for her, she wouldn't say no. SkyZ angsty fluff. One-Shot.


Shooting was a simple task. It was hard to mess up. Pull the trigger and something gets hit. At least that was how it was supposed to work. Z squinted at the target across the shooting range of the SPD training center. She had gone through almost an entire clip of ammunition without her striker hitting the bull's-eye once.

Sighing, she shoved the striker back into its holster. She wondered why she had even bothered coming down here at all. It was late, she was tired, and obviously, she couldn't do anything right. Today's mission had been a total disaster, and it was all her fault. Despite Jack's overanxious attempts to persuade her otherwise, Z refused to believe that it wasn't a big deal.

She had almost had him. Broodwing was almost in her hands. If only she'd reached her badge just a little quicker, or cornered him instead of running up to him in a wide-open space, maybe they would have gotten him. Maybe if she'd waited for back up, they could have surrounded him. Maybe… This was getting her nowhere.

Z knew she was too rash; it was her downfall, but she couldn't help it. Growing up on the streets, there was only one thing she could always rely on, and that was her instincts. In police work, however, it didn't seem to work that way. She needed to be more calculating, more patient, more like Sky. He always had back up plans for his back up plans. Even as she thought this, Z hated herself for it.

Frustrated, she lifted her striker back into her hands. One more shot, she promised herself. One more, and then she'd go to bed. "Focus, Z." She muttered under her breath. Aiming, she pulled the trigger and inspected the damage. She was off target again. "Damn!"

"Wow. Nice shooting, Delgado." A wry voice from behind her caused Z to jump, accidentally pulling the trigger and hitting the back wall. She spun around to see whose throat she'd have to rip out and was pleased to find that Sky would be on the receiving end of her rage. That was always fun.

"Jesus, Sky! You know I hate when you do that." She seethed. His presence sent her over the edge and coupled with the entire aggravation of the day, she tensed up.

"Do what? What did I do?" He asked, faking innocence.

"That thing you always do."

"What thing?"

"You do that...thing. When you just come out of nowhere and..." He gave her a sideways glance, thick with ego and she stopped. "Forget it." She shot him an icy glare before turning away and shooting her striker again. Yet another miss. This was the furthest off she'd been yet. "Damn it!"

"Here, let me help." Sky reached forward to her elbow, but she pulled away, bitterly. That was the last thing she needed: Sky, in all his smug perfection, bestowing the gift of his advice upon her. As if.

"I don't need you or your help, thank you very much." Z spat. Her anger boiled beneath her skin, but he stared back at her, completely unfazed. It wasn't enough. She wanted him to scream at her so she could scream back. She wanted him to break the way she was broken. "Why don't you just go back to whatever shadow you seeped out of?"

"Jeez, did it just get cold in here?" Pretending to shiver, he laughed. It hadn't worked. If he wasn't going to give her a fight, then he might as well just go.

"I'm serious, Sky. Get lost." When he didn't budge, Z decided to ignore him and get a few more shots in. She looked down at her striker. She was empty. Pulling a fully charged clip from her pocket, she loaded up and pulled the trigger. This whole missing thing was starting to drive her crazy. She rubbed at the back of her neck and tried to calm down. "What is wrong with me, today?"

"For one thing, you're hitting low." His answer caught her off guard. She hadn't expected an answer. Looking up at the target, Z saw that, as usual, Sky was right. All the marks screamed back at her from below the bull's-eye. This time, when he reached for her elbow, she didn't resist. He positioned himself behind her, adjusting and refocused her aim. "For another, you're being way too hard on yourself... What happened to you today could have happened to any one of us." He continued. "Broodwing is slippery. You don't end up on the most wanted list in like fourteen galaxies by being easy to catch." He pulled her arm up and finally let go. "There. Try it, now."

Shot after shot rang through the room, causing Z's ears to ring, but she didn't blink. She had to restrain her happiness upon seeing that every single one had gone straight through the target's center.

"Better?" He asked, and she felt his breath on her ear. She turned, only wearing half the smile she was on the inside.

"Much."

He wanted to say something. She could see it, but he didn't. Sky was hesitating, possibly thinking of a series of back up plans. "I'm going to... get going." Retreat. His plan was to retreat.

"You don't have to," Z said, putting the striker back in the holster again, this time for good. She'd told herself one more shot eight shots ago. It was time for her to call it a night, anyway. "I'm basically done."

"No, that's okay," He insisted, but he didn't leave. What was he doing? Buying time? Or was he hiding something?

"Really, it's fine. If you want to shoot—"

"Oh, I didn't come here to practice."

"Then… Why did you come in here?" She asked, voice dripping with accusation and suspicion. Suddenly, realization painted itself across her face. Her anger began to boil once more. "Did you come to check in on me?" She asked slowly, attempting to put more distain into every word than the last.

If there was one thing Z hated more than Sky creeping out of the shadows, it was when he treated her like a damsel in distress. Just because she was a girl didn't mean that she needed to be babysat. Before he came in, she had been handling herself just fine.

"What? No way." Obviously, her tone had tipped Sky off to the right answer. Now, the only question left was if he could talk his way out of it. "I was just... looking for a little peace and quiet."

"In the shooting range?" Z raised one eyebrow, skeptically. "Right."

"Well, if your shooting today is any indication, I'd say it's been pretty quiet down here lately." He shot back. Two could play at that game.

"I'm not the only one who practices, you know." She began to close the space between them, trying to make herself more intimidating. He held his ground. Perhaps she'd get her fight, after all.

"That's true, but I'd say you're the only one who needs to." Sky crossed his arms, daring her to make a comeback.

"Oh yeah?" She challenged, getting closer still. He looked down at her, reminding her of his physical advantage. With one hand, she pried one of Sky's hands loose and slapped her striker into his palm. "Let's see what you're made of, tough guy."

"Fine," He smirked. He wasn't concerned. She could have strangled him right then and there. "Watch and learn, cadet." He squared himself up against the booth, squinted and exhaled deeply. He put his arms into position, pulled back, and tried again.

"Any day now." He glared back at her for breaking his concentration. Putting her hand up, she silently apologized, and he turned back. He focused on the target and pulled the trigger back, releasing bursts of intense energy, all sailing directly through the bull's-eye. Victoriously, he grinned and handed her the striker. "Okay, okay. You proved your point."

"Damn straight I did!" He smirked as she packed up. Z was quiet. She couldn't deal with Sky's ego just then. She had to get out of there. As she walked towards the door, she felt a hand wrap around her wrist. "Hey."

"What?" She turned around angrily.

"We'll get him." For some reason, this was the most reassuring thing she'd heard all day. Z could tell that Sky wasn't just saying it out of pity or obligation to friendship. He wasn't even saying it to make her feel better. He was saying it because it was true and for the first time, she felt like whatever mistake she'd made could be corrected. In that moment, she no longer wanted to kill him. "Okay? I promise."

"Yeah, okay."

"Alright." He let go of her wrist and patted her shoulder awkwardly. "Time for bed?"

"Yours or mine?" She muttered. Instantly, she wished she could reach out, grab the words and shove them back inside her.

"Excuse me?"

"Joke!" Z answered quickly. "I was joking. It was a joke."

"Oh, okay... Let's go."


End file.
